Ken Welch reverses course, will move forward with Science Center sale

St. Petersburg Mayor Ken Welch will proceed with a previous agreement to sell the St. Pete Science Center to a private group seeking to revitalize it, after City Council last week urged him to do so. 

“Given Council’s consensus request from last week’s meeting, I have directed my team to proceed with the previous Science Center agreement, identity the next-best alternatives to increase operational capabilities and Equalization Storage capacity at the NWWRF (Northwest Water Reclamation Facility), and estimate what the additional costs may be for land acquisition,” Welch wrote in a letter to City Council Tuesday obtained by Florida Politics. 

At issue was an agreement to sell the Science Center property, located in West St. Pete near the Azalea neighborhood, that Welch had abandoned after a feasibility study showed it was the most ideal and cost-effective site for a future water storage facility needed to ensure capacity and continuity of water service in the event of future challenges to the water reclamation system, such as those seen last year during Hurricanes Helene and Milton. 

Welch explained his rationale for rejecting a previously agreed upon sale, which had garnered significant community support and attracted millions in outside public and private funding. 

“I believed that the project could have gone forward on another non-city parcel, while still utilizing the federal and state support promised over the years,” Welch wrote. “That scenario would have allowed the city to strengthen the NWWRF’s wet weather resilience under the most cost-effective option while maintaining onsite flexibility for future plant expansions.” 

He added that after having to shutter two of three water reclamation facilities last year following the back-to-back hurricanes, his “focus remains on implementing the most impactful investment in improvements citywide, and particularly for the highest elevated plant in our system, which may once again be our only functioning water reclamation facility during future storms.” 

Instead, Welch wrote that “staff will continue to work on alternative options to complete essential infrastructure upgrades as needed at the NWWRF.”

While the letter signals a win for Science Center supporters, it made clear Welch’s discontent with the arrangement. He noted that he would have to “estimate additional costs” for land acquisition related to creating a new brush site, should the one near the Science Center be used for future water storage needs, as was contemplated as an option in the feasibility report. He also noted Council’s “willingness to support higher-cost options,” such as relocating the brush site. 

Council voted unanimously last week to encourage Welch to move forward with the Science Center sale. 

St. Pete for STEAM, the group working to reactivate the Center, had already agreed with the city to pay $1.6 million for the Science Center site.

City Council members agreed that the city should be proactive in identifying feasible space for future waste and stormwater capacity, but they disagreed that it had to be at the Science Center site. 

The feasibility report at issue in Thursday’s discussion examined nine sites within the northwest St. Pete area for the construction of new water storage tanks, including the Science Center.

The Science Center and an existing brush site were ranked the most feasible locations for a future water project. 

Both sites ranked similarly, with the brush site ranking better for ease of construction.

The difference came down to demolition costs. Because the brush site amounts to basically cleared land, except for some brush and debris piles that would need to be removed, the Science Center’s demolition costs would be about four times as expensive.

The city’s feasibility center further looked at land acquisition costs. Since it already owns the Science Center property, no fee would be associated with acquiring it. However, if the brush site were to be used, the city would have to develop new land to establish a new brush site. It is estimated that the cost is $2.9 million, significantly more than the $1.6 million that St. Pete STEAM has agreed to pay for the Science Center site.

But there are potential flaws in determining those costs. The study used a specific address — 2401 72nd St. North — as a comparison for property value. The property includes a well-maintained warehouse with 7,000 square feet of office space.

A presentation Florida Politics previously obtained offered an alternative cost at just $1.3 million, factoring a price of $650,000 per acre for land and highest and best use, for two acres to accommodate the brush site. 

One of the project’s most prominent proponents is former St. Pete City Council member Robert Blackmon. Blackmon ran unsuccessfully against Welch in the 2021 Mayor’s race.